The Skewer in Chess: force the king to move

The skewer is, for me, the most ironic tactic in chess. Why? Because the more valuable the piece you attack, the more forced the opponent is to move it… and by moving it, they expose something you can capture for free.

It’s the exact opposite of the pin: there, the valuable piece is behind and the front piece can’t move. In the skewer, the valuable piece is in front and can’t stay put.

The mechanics of the skewer

Let’s see what you need to execute it:

1. A long-range piece — bishop, rook, or queen — attacking along a line.
2. A valuable opponent piece on that line, in the first position.
3. A less valuable piece behind the first one.

When you attack the more valuable piece, the opponent has to move it because it’s worth too much to lose. And by moving it, the piece that was behind it is exposed. You capture it. That simple.

The skewer in action

And what does this look like on the board? Look at the following exercise.

Why the skewer wins material

Let’s analyze it step by step. After Rh4+ (rook from h1 to h4, giving check):

• The rook on h4 attacks the king on d4 along the same rank (h4-g4-f4-e4-d4 ✓).
• The king must move: it can’t capture the rook (too far away), and there’s nothing to block with.
• Behind the king, on that same fourth rank, is the black queen on a4 — but she can’t capture the rook herself, because her own king blocks the way.
• As soon as the king moves (to c3, c5, d3, d5, e3, or e5), the rook captures the queen on a4 (h4-g4-f4-e4-d4-c4-b4-a4, with the king out of the way ✓).
• Result: White wins the queen (9 points) with a single maneuver.

The key is right there: the king can’t choose to stay put, and it can’t solve the check by capturing or defending the queen at the same time.

The skewer vs. the pin: order matters

What’s the real difference between the two? Let me explain with a table:

In the pin, the front piece protects the one behind it and stays pinned in place. In the skewer, the front piece is the more valuable one and is forced to flee. The one behind falls.

Skewer without check: the relative skewer

Here’s something a lot of people don’t know: the skewer doesn’t always involve check. It can also directly attack the queen.

Imagine a rook on f1, the enemy queen on f5, and an enemy rook on f8. If your rook threatens the queen on f5, the opponent has to move it. What happens? Your rook takes the rook on f8. You won a rook. That’s a relative skewer: there’s no check, but the direct threat on the most valuable piece forces the move.

How to spot skewer opportunities

Before every move, ask yourself these questions:

1. Is the enemy king on a rank or file with another of their pieces behind it?
2. Is the enemy queen on a diagonal with a rook or another of their pieces behind it?
3. In the endgame, are the enemy king and a passed pawn aligned with my rook or my bishop?

Practical rule: when the enemy king is active in the center or on the flank — common in endgames — always check whether there are their pieces on the same rank, file, or diagonal. A rook that can execute the skewer at that moment is a winning piece.

Once you master the skewer, you’ll see these opportunities constantly. And when you spot them, your opponent won’t have an escape.

Related tactics: The Pin · The Fork · The Discovered Attack